Lessons for Better Health in the Kenya Students Communities

Topics Covered in 2015/16 and teaching aid posters we created for them

Asthma

Chronic Diseases

HIV

Hygiene

Depression

Malaria and Yellow Fever

Mental Health

Puberty

Nutrition

Topics Covered in 2014

Exercise

Educating with Popular Ads

Health for life team engaging students

Nutrition

Metkei secondary school girls learn from Gwyneth Paltrow

Kenyatta University team addressing a class

Depression

Issues of Suicide at Kerio Valley

Self-Esteem

A book that helps you improve as an individual

Circumcision

Class discussion on Circumcision

How should harmful effects of female circumcision be taught?

About circumcision tradition

Topics Covered in 2013

OVERVIEW

NUTRITION

Healthy eating is an important part of a balanced and healthy life style. It lowers the risks of health problems such as heart disease, obesity, diabetes and cancer. A healthy breakfast for example, can increase the body’s metabolic rate. Drinking at least 8 glasses of water per day, not only gives your body the hydration that it needs in a day but it also flushes out toxins, improves skin and makes you feel more alert. Eating 4 to 5 small meals allows the body to digest the food and decreases chances of obesity and heart disease. Colour your plate with foods that are red, blue, green, purple, etc. – it is the surest way to balance your food groups and get the right nutrients!

EXERCISE

It is important to exercise at least one hour a day when you are a teenager, because it increases your energy, prevents diseases such as arteriosclerosis, diabetes and obesity, you get better sleep after it, you focus better in school – more exercise is proved to result in better grades. It improves your mood (because it releases endorphins), it improves blood flow because it lowers blood pressure and heart rate. It also burns fats to control weight and improves your mood. It can also be fun!

DO YOU EAT A HEALTHY DIET?

You do if you if you drink a min of 8 glasses of water a day, if your plate has red, blue, green and purple foods, and if you have 7-8 servings of fruits and vegetables a day, 6 servings of grains a day, 3-4 servings of dairy and 2 servings of protein (red meat,chicken or fish) a day and minimize other foods (ice cream, cake, biscuits, etc) to one serving a day at most.

TIPS ON HOW TO GET THE 1HR EXERCISE THAT TEENS NEED IN A DAY

Join a sports team. Do push-ups, sit-ups, lunges, plank, and jumping jacks when you wake up or take a break later in the day to do them. Go for a run around the school.

If the school has no sports curriculum, you can use the 7-minute workout app, downloadable from the apple app store here:

HOW DO YOU REDUCE THE RISK OF OBESITY?Eat a healthy diet. Eat breakfast every morning to increase your metabolic rate. Drink 8 glasses of water a day to flush toxins and gives you energy. Eat 4-5 small meals a day instead of the 3 big meals that we are accustomed to.

DENTAL HEALTH

SELF-CONCEPT PART 1

The simplest definition of a person’s self-image is their answer to the question: “What do you believe people think about you?” Our lesson focuses on the importance of maintaining positive self-image and we ask students at the outset to break up into groups and brainstorm the following questions: What do you think self image means? what influences it and what effects can it have?
The videos we relied on were:

SELF-CONCEPT PART 2

We discuss two main influences on self-image:The Media which distorts one’s perception of beauty and Friends whom we encourage to act out of kindness versus bullying.

There are steps that can be taken to improve self-image:Recognize your strengths and weaknesses.positive mental attitude (being optimistic, open minded, accepting challenges and trying to find solutions, deal with stress constructively). Having positive people in your life.be courageous.Be action oriented.Change what you don’t like and accept what you can’t change.Withstanding negative influences and understanding what you see in the media is not necessarily true or real.